India, Jordan renew support for Palestine

(MENAFN - Gulf Times) India and Jordan yesterday renewed their support to the Palestinian cause as the two sides signed 12 agreements, including one on defence co-operation, following a bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jordan's King Abdullah. 'Both leaders renewed their support and commitment to the Palestinian cause, T S Tirumurti, secretary (economic relations) in the ministry of external affairs, said at a media briefing following the meeting. 'King Abdullah was appreciative of our prime minister undertaking a standalone visit to Palestine through Amman, Tirumurti said. Last month, Jordan facilitated Modi's transit to Palestine in what was the first ever Indian prime ministerial visit to the West Asian nation. The visit effectively de-linked Israel from Palestine. Also, in December last year, India voted with the rest of the world in the UN General Assembly against US President Donald Trump's unilateral announcement recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. According to Tirumurti, King Abdullah also commended India for the 'very significant role it was playing in West Asia. The secretary also said that economic relations also remain an important focus of King Abdullah's visit. 'Both leaders agreed to explore possibilities of co-operating in assisting Africa, he said. 'The prime minister mentioned about India's developmental assistance to the tune of $10bn in lines of credit. On Wednesday, King Abdullah met a select group of Indian CEOs and attended the India-Jordan Business Forum. Tirumurti said both Modi and King Abdullah welcomed the signing of the MoU on defence co-operation following yesterday's meeting. 'There is keenness on both sides to take this co-operation further and we are in the process of exploring avenues for enhancing our co-operation, he said. 'We are also looking at closer security co-operation keeping in mind the tremendous experience which Jordan has in the region. The MoU is aimed at promoting co-operation between India and Jordan in the field of defence by defining the scope of such co-operation and making provisions for implementation of the co-operation in some of the recognised areas like training, defence industry, counter-terrorism, military studies, cyber security, military medical services and peacekeeping, according to the ministry of external affairs. The two sides also signed a MoU on co-operation in the field of health and medicine. The objective of this MoU is to establish and encourage co-operation in the fields of health, medical science, medical education and research on the basis of equality and mutual benefits in accordance with the respective legislations and regulations of India and Jordan.